Animated Architecture

A new visual culture has come to dominate the presentation of architecture in recent years: animated digital visualisation, boosted by ever growing computer capacities, is now the tool of choice to render both actual building projects and futuristic architectural visions.

When architectural designs are shown in an exhibition context today, often videos have to carry the issue and form even the highlight of the presentation – just look, for example, at the exhibition of Zaha Hadid’s Casino project in the Schweizerische Architekturmuseum. Also, regular and by now established festivals are held, in Florence (International Festival for Architecture in Video/Beyond Media) or in Rotterdam (Architecture Film Festival Rotterdam), for example.

The video visualisations incorporate elements of music, graphics and text within a realisation of architectural vision. The term “vision” can be taken quite literally here, since this technique allows the user to envisage not only commissioned architecture, but also free architectural design and experimental work.

These digital video visions share the fact that they access media (video, music, graphics) or media genres (music video, games) that are not traditionally connected to architecture, furthermore, they develop a specific language designed to present architectural detail within a short film, going beyond simple videos on architecture as a means of communication. The crucial point here is that the medium has taken on a life of its own: besides serving as a representational film that replaces the old architectural model, video is increasingly used as a platform for freely experimental fictions.

The selected videos are made by architects but not exclusively as artists and designers are also dealing with architectonical questions in architecture shorts.

Films:

Zeitguised, „Peripetics“, 2008, 3.20’

Andreas Martini, „Crest“, 2008, 1.30’

Limmat, „District 2: Edge 1“, 2006, 2’

Kaspar Astrup Schröder, „My Playground“ (Trailer), 2009, 6’

Johannes Guerreiro, „Twisted Reality“, 2008, 2’

Jan Schönwiesner, „Visual Music“, 2008, 4.20’ 

David Mozny, „Rahova“, 2009, 6.20’

Sergej Hein, „Berlin Block Tetris“, 2009, 1.30’

Julio Soto, „Invisible Cities“, 2003, 6’

Mirza & Butler,  „The Space between“ ,  2005, 12’

Quayola, „Architectural Density“, 2006, 4’

Semiconductor, „Matter in Motion“, 2008, 5.30’

www.itfs.de/programme/rahmenprogramm/weitere-programmhighlights.html